A new Maritime Studies paper titled Shoreline of Small Things: Contextualizing a Cultural Dimension of Dried Fish in the Indian Sundarbans, explores the cultural significance of dried fish production in Sagar Island in the Indian Sunderbans. Authors Raktima Ghosh, Jenia Mukherjee, Amrita Sen, and Anuradha Choudry highlight how fishing and drying practices are deeply embedded in local traditions, ecological knowledge, and community relations. Using the framework of new cultural geography, the authors highlight how dried fish production is shaped by material practices (fishing techniques, drying methods, and cooperative networks) and symbolic meanings (rituals, values, and social relations). They argue that the cultural significance of dried fish is often overlooked in fisheries governance, which increasingly prioritizes commercialization and export-oriented policies.
The study underscores how modern fisheries policies, focused on commercialization and mechanized fishing, threaten small-scale dried fish economies by marginalizing traditional practices and restricting access to fish drying spaces. With younger generations seeking alternative livelihoods, these cultural traditions face an uncertain future. The research, part of the Dried Fish Matters (DFM) project, calls for policies that recognize and protect the social and ecological relationships sustaining dried fish production. Read the full paper here.